The Blade Of A Lion
by Ric Leonhart
Summary: A novelization of Final Fantasy VIII. Chapter 6 up. R&R!
1. Arise From Your Sleep, Children Of Fate

The Blade Of A Lion  
  
- Prologue -  
  
I'll be here.  
  
Why?  
  
I'll be 'waiting'..here..  
  
For what?  
  
I'll be waiting. for you. so..  
  
If you come here.  
  
You'll find me..  
  
I promise.  
  
Wind was blowing, from seas, over deserts, to fields of flowers, bringing crown leafs and streams of colors up above the ground. Leafs was dancing in the wind, meanwhile one.. One of the finest crown leafs was caught gently into the slender hand of a young woman, standing in the field. She looked down at her hand, pure gentleness overwhelming her heart, thoughts of the one she cared about, the one she would always be waiting for. Opening her hand, a pure white feather emerged from her hand, stroked over her wrist, before emerging upwards and upwards.. Towards the sky, traveling with the wind, followed by the eyes of a young woman with raven black hair, black and blue clothes and a necklace with a ring on it.  
  
The feather flew up into the sky, a sky darkening with clouds.. A loud roar was heard as the thunder lightened up the darkness for a second, the light flashing in a shining, metallic object that spun downwards. Just to hit the ground hard, and be kept standing in the dirt.  
  
Everyone could see the shape of it. The sharp blade. The barrel. The handle. The trigger. The lion on the blade.  
  
A gunblade.  
  
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My first writing, my first chapter. Maybe my grammar sucks, and maybe I don't get the grammar right, but, I don't care. This won't exactly be a fanfic, though. But a novel of the real thing. I'd like to try setting the soul of Final Fantasy VIII on the paper, and I hope I'll succeed. Both for me, and for you readers. R&R! 


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1  
  
Squall Leonhart grabbed his gunblade, and yanked it up from the ground, exactly at the same time it took for his rival, Seifer Almasy, to pick up his own gunblade and point it towards Squall with a smirk. Squall's pale gray eyes met Seifer's as he ran towards him, boots slamming towards the ground.  
  
"Yeah, that's right! Come and get me!" Seifer grinned. Squall didn't let himself be provoked. Seifer took a step aside and let Squall run straight towards him. But Squall was more experienced than letting his back be vulnerable. As he ran past, he swung the gunblade towards Seifer, who had to take another step, and then be out of range to give Squall a blow in the back. Squall stopped, took a turn on the spot, and then ran back. Seifer ran towards Squall as well, his long gray cape waving in the wind.  
  
Seifer spun around, giving speed to his gunblade, before striking out. Squall met the blow and pushed Seifer away, sparring another blow as Seifer went out of range once again. Seifer gave another smirk, giving a 'come here' gesture to Squall.  
  
Squall came!  
  
Seifer was ready, and started stabbing the Hyperion towards Squall. Squall parred the blows, showing Seifer's weapon out of the way, and starting a dance of serial blows towards the one year older gunblader. Seifer had to put a hand on the blade itself to be able to block the strikes from his rival.  
  
Seifer didn't like the way things started to work out. He never would accept a defeat, especially not from Squall. He could feel himself weaken, Squall's strength started to get to him now. But not the hell if he should win!  
  
Squall took a jump back, spinning his gunblade. He could see Seifer started to get slow, but he also knew that Seifer wasn't to be underestimated. He took a firm grip on his gunblade, and started to run towards Seifer once again. This was just training, but they would fight until they called it a win. And, if he knew Seifer right, Seifer wouldn't call Squall a winner until he collapsed himself. Squall reached out his hand, as he saw Seifer black-glove-dressed hand started to glow, then burn in flames.  
  
"Oh, no!" Squall thought for himself. He brought up the gunblade fast, as the Fire spell shot out of Seifer's hand. The scorching hot flame hit the gunblade, but the power made Squall fly backwards, hitting the ground as he yelped in pain. When he opened his eyes, he saw Seifer stand before him, his Hyperion gunblade risen and ready for blow.  
  
Squall couldn't do that much, but waiting for a blow he knew would come.  
  
As Seifer struck Squall, Squall could just feel the hit, then a tremendous pain as he saw his own AB blood colored the ground red. As red as his vision became as he looked up at Seifer's smirk. That bastard had used magic to bring him down, then struck him with purpose, even this was nothing but traning. Squall gritted his teeth and took a hard grip at his gunblade, then stood up, glaring at Seifer. The damage done to him gave him a boost of energy, making him tremble, then going right into his inner strength reserves as blue light shot out of him.  
  
"ROUGH DIVIDE!"  
  
Squall's scream could be heard into Balamb town itself, as he ran toward Seifer, glowing red like a demon as he drew the tip of the gunblade along the ground, before bringing it up just before it could hit Seifer with full force. The blade hit Seifer across the face, making the blood sprout just at it did to Squall, before the young gunblader jumped high up into the air and landed on the spot where he stood not long ago.  
  
And then sinking down to his knees, exhausted. Then looking at a bloody Seifer coming towards him.  
  
"I win, Squall!" ha grinned. Before smacking a fist into Squall's face, sending his head straight to the ground.  
  
"Whatever!" was Squall's last thought before everything went black.  
  
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Well, first chapter. You like it? Sure hope so, 'cause I intend to keep on writing for a long time. Keep R&R! 


	3. Chapter 2

The Blade Of A Lion  
  
Chapter 2  
  
The smell of medicine hung thick in the room, and the bright light was a bit too much for Squall as he tried to open his eyes at first. His vision was blurry, and he had to blink a couple of times before he understood that he was staring right up into a lamp in the roof. He turned his head, realizing that was the first of a movement he had done for at least two hours. Last thing he remembered was the smirk of Seifer, with a bloody scar across his face. Not exactly his best memory.  
  
He appreciated more the friendly face of the Balamb Garden Doctor, Doctor Kadowaki, standing over him, watching him as he moved slowly. His senses could then tell him he was in the infirmary. He didn't know who had brought him here, and honestly, he didn't care.  
  
"How are you feeling?" Dr. Kadowaki asked. Squall felt a pain in the forehead, but decided not to say anything about it. He just responded with a motionless "Ok.." "Take it easy next time, you hear?" Kadowaki scolded as a start. "Your eyes are focusing, so you should be fine. Say your name for me!"  
  
"Squall," he said short.  
  
"Why don't you take it easy in training?" The doctor said, putting her hands on her hips. "Next time you might not be so lucky!"  
  
"Tell that to Seifer!" Squall said, raising at his elbows, feeling the pain in the head wouldn't go away.  
  
"That Seifer." Kadowaki started, like that name was something she didn't wanted to think about. ".won't listen to anybody," Her eyes wandered around, before she turned to Squall again. "Why don't you ignore him?"  
  
Squall sat his grey eyes into Kadowaki's. "I can't just run away!"  
  
Kadowaki shook her head. "You want to be cool, huh?" He dropped her arms down her side. "Well, don't get hurt in the process!" For some reason, Squall didn't wanted to thank her for the advice. "Let's see.." Kadowaki started, staring at the lamp. "Your instructor is.. Quistis! I'll call her now. Just wait here a minute!" She said, before walking off to the telephone. Squall could hear as he dialled the number to his instructor. He lay down, and let one ear listen to the one-way conversation.  
  
"Quistis? Come get your student.. Yes, yes.!" Break. "His injury is not bad. It'll probably leave a scar!" Squall wasn't in doubt that she spoke about the wound Seifer had given him for.. How long was it? Squall was highly unsure how long he had been here. "Right. Now please come by," was Kadowaki's words before Squall heard her hang up.  
  
Then he could sense movement beside him, on the other side of a window next to his bed. His vision still blurry, it was a little difficult to see the face. The bandage wrapped around his head, and almost down into his eyes, didn't help the matter. He spotted colors of white, blue and green. Brown hair. A girl. Had he seen her before?  
  
"Squall." She said. No doubt it was a girl now. "So we meet again.." Squall didn't understood a thing. This girl knew him? Who was she? Her voice seemed familiar, but Squall was unable to place it. His memory let him down completely.  
  
Come to think about it, he didn't remember much from the past. He could remember the SeeD teachings and all that, but things from before he arrived at Balamb Garden, was like washed away from his mind.  
  
His attention was drawn towards the sound of doors opening, and a young girl entering the room. Blonde hair was tied back in a ponytail, and two bright hairlocks fell down on each side of her face, down to her SeeD Uniform. The bright-black clothes lined with gold, pattern bands and blue bands going over her jacket, and a red tie. Girl's part of the uniform, the skirt, was as bright black as the rest, and Quistis Trepe fit very well into it. She was admired and adored by most of the students in garden. She came to Squall's bed and stood there, watching him for a moment, before she shook her head and walked up to the bedside.  
  
She sighed. "I knew it'd be either you or Seifer," she said, with a scolding undertone in her voice. Squall chose not to reply, but just stood up and ignored anymore pain. "Come on, let's go," Quistis said. "Today's the field exam!"  
  
Squall remembered, and although he didn't wanted to admit it, he had been looking forward to this day. He and Quistis started to walk out of the infirmary, Squall first, and Quistis following behind.  
  
"Squall?" Quistis asked. "Is there something on your mind?" he said as they walked.  
  
"Not really.." Squall said, realizing that Quistis had said the same exactly at the same time. He didn't bothered, until he heard Quistis giggle behind him. He stopped and turned.  
  
"What's so funny?" he asked.  
  
"Funny? No, it's not that! I'm just happy," Quistis said, trying to hold her giggling. "I feel like I'm beginning to understand my student a little. That's all!"  
  
Squall didn't show any sign of affection. "I'm more complex than you think!" He just said.  
  
"Then tell me!" Quistis smiled. "Tell me more about yourself!"  
  
Squall turned around and started to walk again "It's none of your."  
  
"Business!" Quistis said, and started giggling again. This time, Squall didn't react or turned, but just kept walking. It was only halfway he bothered to glance at a whole branch of students on their way to their classrooms. Balamb Garden had awoken, ready for a new day. The clocks ringing signalled that day's first lesson was about to begin. Squall wrapped his bandage off his head and tossed it in a trash can as they walked into the Balamb lobby.  
  
Squall entered the classroom and went back in the room to sit on his usual spot. He sat down just as Quistis entered the room with a "Good morning, class," and greeted. "Let's start with today's schedule," she said before she went to sit down at her desk. She folded her hands and leaned forward at her desk. "There seems to have been some rumors flying around since yesterday," she started. Now she got the attention from the class.  
  
"Yes, the Field Exam for SeeD candidates will begin later this afternoon!" Whispering could be heard around the classroom. "Those not participating and those who failed last week's written test are to remain here in the study hall," Quistis went on. "Field exam participants will have free time until the exam, just make sure you're in top condition. Meet in the hall at 1600 hours. I'll announce the team assignments there. Any questions?" Quistis said as she leaned back in her chair. No replies were given.  
  
"Oh, and Seifer.." Quistis said, eying her oldest student in class. The head with short blonde hair, gave Quistis attention. "Do NOT injure your partner while training!" Quistis said strictly. "Be careful from now on!" she added.  
  
Seifer had never be the one to take a scold, so he slammed his hand in his desk, without getting Quistis' attention.  
  
"Field exam participants, I will see you all later," Quistis said, and at the same moment, the students arose and headed out of the classroom. Seifer gave Squall a glare as he walked by, although Squall didn't notice. He never bothered to look at Seifer, something that seemed to annoy the other gunblader.  
  
"And, Squall?" Quistis said. "I need to talk to you!"  
  
Squall stood up, and started to walk upwards the classroom, eying his instructor as he approached her. Quistis looked at him, a usual smile that Squall never understood or bothered to understand. She rarely gave the same attention to her other students. Squall shook his thought off. He didn't felt anything specific for Quistis. She was one year older, and his instructor. No way she could be feeling that way for him.  
  
"Have you been to the Fire Cavern yet?" she asked. Squall gave himself a slap across the face in his mind. He was supposed to go to the Fire Cavern this morning, in order to do the final task before today's exam. He shook his head to Quistis.  
  
"Hm. Do you have a good excuse?" Quistis said sharply.  
  
".Not really," Squall answered, and crossed his arms.  
  
"Then let's get going!" she said. "Go check your study panel, and junction the GF there. It is fully prepared. I'll be waiting at the front gate, so come down when you're ready!" With that, Quistis stepped out of the classroom, leaving Squall and three other students in the classroom.  
  
The three students headed to Squall. "You really going to go with instructor Quistis? Lucky you!" they said, among other chattering about Quistis. Squall sighed. Quistis was a beautiful instructor, in addition to be Garden's youngest instructor at her level. She was so popular, that some of the students had their own fanclub, called the Trepe Group.  
  
Squall didn't pay them much attention, and went down to his study panel. He logged on to the computer and checked the 'new' icon that had came up on his file. Inside he got the junction data for the GF Shiva, the queen of ice.  
  
Squall closed his eyes and vision himself, mumbling the spell that would make Shiva a part of him. He imagined himself calling the Ice queen, sensing a cold wind giving him strength. He could feel the chill inside of him. Then a voice speak to him.  
  
-Thanks for letting me help you, SeeD Cadet!-  
  
The GF junction was complete.  
  
Squall arose and went out of the classroom, heading for the elevator, while thinking a little, about the GF. Guardian Forces, unique creatures with incredible powers. When summoned, they surrounded the summoner with their life force until the summoning process was complete. Then the GF could enter the battlefield and aid the summoner with their incredible powers.  
  
To summon a GF, it had to be junctioned, meaning to make the GF a part of the user. When done, the GF was able to learn certain abilities, and share them with its master.  
  
Squall, amond all others who junctioned GF's, made use of these abilities. When junctioned, Squall had asked Shiva to lend him the abilities of summoning, drawing, and item usage. The summoning ability was so Squall could call upon Shiva when he needed her.  
  
Next, the draw ability, would let the GF's master draw magic from either enemies or draw points. Part of some SeeD training was to use magic, and magic had to be drawn. The magic had two ways of being used, one, for attack or support, second, to raise a user's stats, like strength or vitality. Also, to do that, one had to junction a GF. GF's used their incredible powers to raise their master's musculature, speed or dexterity, for example. Meaning usage of magic would be a double-edged sword. The magic could aid the user or hurt his opponent, but for every turn he used magic, the user would slowly, but surely, get weaker. That's where the drawing ability would come in handy, because of it, you would always be able to stock up on the magic you had lost.  
  
Last, the item usage was an ability that often was handy for those who were afraid of the strength loss due to magic usage. It was quite funny, though, because it could make the GF sounding more like a carrier donkey. Basically, the GF made sure there was always room in your pocket. Meaning you could stock up on items like potions or phoenix downs, and the GF would carry them for you, and in some mysterious way always placing exactly the item you wanted in your pocket. It would be very handy, since otherwise, one would need a backpack to carry his items. Or carry all in his pockets. And walking around in the world with a bunch of items in your pockets could make you look like you were trying to smuggle fish out of Balamb.  
  
Squall, as well as Seifer and all those others in his class, was well taught in how to use a GF. Only SeeD's was allowed to junction GF's full- time, but some chose not to do it, because there was warnings about usage of the GF's. Because of the abilities they learned, it could cause loss of memory. This, however, was not proved. For SeeD cadets, the GF's was only given a certain time before the exams, for example when the students was going to the Fire Cavern. And the GF's was always at a low level at the time they was given, because a powerful GF could choose to not obey its master.  
  
This ran through Squall's mind as he walked towards the elevator, seeing it was Shiva that reminded him of the GF's life. Shiva was a good GF, always calm and caring for her master. No reports of trouble had ever been given on Shiva.  
  
"I'm late. I'm late, I'M LATE!!" a girly voice screamed, before a girl with brown hair suddenly crashed into Squall. This tore Squall out of his thoughts, and he immediately found the balance. The girl, however, dropped to the floor.  
  
"Are you ok?" Squall asked, just for polite sake. The girl jumped to her feet.  
  
"Tee-Hee, I'm fine," the girl said. Squall rolled his eyes. Some hyperactive kid had just bumped into him.  
  
"Sorry. I was kinda in a hurry.. Oh yeah! Hey, did you just come out from that class?" She asked nervously. "Is. registration over?" she added to the question. There were too many questions for one answer, Squall thought, so he just nodded.  
  
"Woo.. Oh nooo. This place is sooo much bigger than my last garden!" she started complaining. Squall wanted to walk away, when the girl grabbed his arm. "Oh, hey, hey! I just transferred here. Do you think you could give me a quick tour of this garden?"  
  
Squall thought it trough. He never liked talking too much with people, but he liked less letting them feel lost if he could do anything about it. He somehow just wanted to help people, no matter how bad the mood he was in.  
  
"Sure," he said.  
  
"Woo-hoo! Alright. Let's go!" the girl jumped up and down in excitement, a gesture Squall couldn't understand at all.  
  
"We'll take the lift to the 1F lobby, and I'll show you the directory," Squall said. He walked off, the girl following his every step. As they walked over to the lift in the centre of Balamb garden she followed close behind.  
  
A loud 'pling' told them the elevator had come down to 1F. Squall and the girl walked out of the elevator, and Squall pointed out a computer rig that was set right in front of the stairs.  
  
"That's the directory," Squall exclaimed. He went over, the girl following, and they both stood right in front of the large computer.  
  
"Well, this is it," Squall said, and looked at the girl. "Balamb Garden is pretty big. It's a good idea to check where you want to go, and select it here!" Squall had hoped that would be the end of the explanation. But obviously, the girl had never used a directory before.  
  
"Basically, you just stand right here. The directory uses some sort of a short-range teleportation system. Notice this platform?" Squall said, and gazed down. The girl nodded. "This is the basic point. When you push the button on the screen," Squall pointed at the screen, but did not touch the screen itself. "You will be teleported to this facility. However, this is a one-way teleportation, so when you have selected a facility, you will be teleported there, and then you have to walk back here if you want to teleport again. Next, I'll give you a quick explanation of the various facilities!" Squall said.  
  
"Yes, sir!" the little girl said. Squall rolled his eyes, and pointed at the facility farthest to the north in the directory:  
  
"You'll find the dormitory to the north. The majority of the students live in the dorms. There aren't many students who commute!"  
  
"Yeah, I'm in the dorms, too!" the girl exclaimed.  
  
"You can rest and change in there," Squall continued. It was obvious, but he added it anyway. "West of the north block is the cafeteria. There's always a big rush for hot dogs. You better get used to waiting in line," he said.  
  
"Got it!"  
  
"East of the north block is the car park. We usually take the garden car when a mission comes up. The front gate, if you're going by foot, is located to the south," Squall went on. 'That's right. I have to go meet instructor Trepe at the front gate' he said to himself when he mentioned the front gate.  
  
"Hm? What's the matter?" the girl asked.  
  
"Nothing." Squall said, and pointed at the location to the west. "Next, we have the quad, located in the west block. There's an event being planned there."  
  
"I know, I know!" The girl interrupted. "It's the garden festival! It's going to be great!" she howled in excitement. "I'm planning to be on the committee. You wanna help out, too!?" she asked.  
  
"Let's just continue.." Squall said, paying no more attention to garden festival or whatever. "South of the west block is the infirmary. This is where you get treted for your injuries, but a lot of students just come here for advice," Squall said.  
  
"What's the doctor's name?" the girl asked.  
  
"Doctor Kadowaki," Squall replied. "Now the east block. This is the training centre. It's the only facility open at night. It's used for training, and they have real monsters running loose here. If you don't take it seriously, you may end up dead. Just be careful," Squall warned.  
  
The girl gulped. ".ok," she said. Squall didn't mean to scare her, but it was necessary she took things seriously when being a SeeD cadet.  
  
"South of the east block is the library. There's a lot of material you can look up there, but the terminals in the classroom are a lot more efficient. And you already know about the classroom on the 2F, right?" Squall said.  
  
"Yep, I remember that one," the girl replied.  
  
"By the way, the headmaster's office is located on the 3F. You need permission to get in!" Squall said, and concluded his tour with that. At least, there was nothing more to say about the directory.  
  
"Another question," the girl broke in. "What's the headmaster's name?"  
  
"Headmaster Cid," Squall said. As he mentioned his name, he remembered the old man. Headmaster Cid was a man of many aspects, and he fit perfectly the role of headmaster for a school that educated elite mercenaries.  
  
"That's about it. Anything else?" Squall asked. His impatience began to move. Instructor Trepe was probably waiting.  
  
"Got it," the girl said, and made Squall relax a bit more. He was about to go when the girl grabbed his arm. "Heey, um. Are you taking today's SeeD exam?" she asked.  
  
"Yeah," Squall answered.  
  
"Then maybe I'll see you again, later," she said, no doubt she was exited about it. "I've already finished my training at my previous Garden. I'm taking the SeeD exam today, too! Good luck to both of us, huh?" Squall nodded. Then, they both turned in different directions. "Thanks a lot!" the girl shouted before they went out of each other's hearing range.  
  
Squall went towards the front gate, and nodded to the receptionist at the entrance. Balamb Garden had made quite a work out of their front gate. The rest of the Garden too, for that sake. The trees and grass were all green and the floor was always clean, so no complains could be made at the look of Balamb Garden.  
  
Just before the gate out to the outer world, Squall passed a draw point. A draw point could pop up all over the world, although a great deal of them was hidden. The magic itself was a planet principal, and since monsters were born out of Gaia, the earth, and Luna, the moon, they often carried great amounts of magic, even if they couldn't or didn't use it. But draw points was magical fountains, pure magic out of Gaia itself. Squall looked at the fountain of tiny, purple beams that rose from the ground, before he reached out his hand, and concentrated on the magic. He could identify the magic as Cure as he drew the magic out of the fountain. He managed to draw 7 units of Cure from it.  
  
From after that, Squall made his way out of the main gate, where Quistis Trepe waited for him.  
  
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So how is it? I'm sorry it took me so long to write this chapter, but around Christmas and new year's eve it gets all busy with family, parties, presents, you know the deal. I promise I'll update next chapter ASAP. We're going to the Fire Cavern, folx! 


	4. Chapter 3

The Blade Of A Lion  
  
Chapter 3  
  
"Hello. Everything ok up till now?" Quistis asked as Squall reached her outside the gate. Quistis' SeeD uniform was switched with orange skirt, orange top and a black belt diagonally wrapped around her. As always, Quistis fit perfectly into her clothes, and her battle gear was no exception. No wonder the Trepies got more and more members every day. Squall nodded at her question.  
  
"I junctioned Shiva," he said. "And you will use Quetzacotl?"  
  
"Yes, it's already junctioned to me," Quistis answered. Quietzacotl, the green bird of thunder was another GF that Balamb had in possession.  
  
"You're ready to go, then. The Fire Cavern used for the test is east of here!" Quistis said. Squall memorized a map over Balamb Island. When starting at Balamb Garden, you had a real easy start, 'cause the Garden's front gate headed directly towards south.  
  
Squall knew they had quite a long way to go. The clock was about 08:30 now, and they had to be back at Balamb Garden before 16:00. Meaning the faster way they took, the better. And, of course, the less monsters they encountered.  
  
Monsters was not an unusual phenomenon. Monsters appeared all over the world, Balamb Island as well. The monster population around Garden would mostly be Bite Bugs, and when you encountered a monster, you either fought it, or ran off, hoping you could run away from it. If not, then poor you.  
  
Squall and Quistis started on their road, walking fast. They followed the road for a while, going south, before turning off to east. Squall glanced out over the plains. He couldn't see any bite bugs right now, but he knew they wouldn't be far away. Bite Bugs rarely went along the road, but out on the plains, they were more brave.  
  
"You lead on, Squall!" Quistis said. "I'll just follow!"  
  
"Fine," Squall replied coldly. Then no more words were exchanged for a while, at least not while they were walking. The silence last until Quistis suddenly turned her head, then whirling around her upper body, her chain whip in her hand. The whip flew out at the Bite Bug that had appeared right behind Squall.  
  
"Squall, watch out!" she shouted before the whip hit the Bite Bug, tossing it to the ground. Squall immediately whirled around with drawn gunblade, cutting the giant jaws off the bite bug.  
  
"Here they come," Quistis said as a swarm of Bite Bugs came towards them. Squall concentrated hard on one of the Bite Bugs as it approached, searching for the traces of magic inside the monster. He found two sorts of magic, one for attack, the other for support, but their signature were both unknown. He concentrated on the attack magic, feeling his inner self reach out for it. The magic took form as blue and purple orbs that was extracted from the Bite Bug, and passed on to Squall.  
  
Squall could now identify the magic as Fire. He had received 5 units of Fire magic.  
  
'No more time for concentration,' he thought, and slashed out as the first Bite Bugs reached them. Wings, mouths and bodies were cut as his gunblade cut through the swarm, killing a whole bunch of Bite Bugs. Squall slashed and slashed and slashed again, with precise, coordinated swings, while Quistis, on the other hand, struck Bite Bug after Bite Bug with her whip. It was somewhat amazing that Quistis could hit the insects with her weapon. Despite the fact that they were bigger than a normal fly, they could still be hard to hit, especially with a whip, but Quistis did it with profession and lethality. The fight didn't go on for long, before a dozen Bite Bug corpses lay on the ground, the rest of the swarm flown away. At that time, Squall had drawn at all 12 units of Fire and 6 units of Scan from the insects.  
  
Without another word, they moved on, walking.  
  
It didn't last longer than a couple of hours before they approached the Fire Cavern. They had been bugged by a few Bite Bugs on their way, but not much damage was done. Nothing a potion couldn't fix.  
  
Squall and Quistis stopped a hundred meters from the Cavern's entrance. "Let's junction the magic we have stocked," Quistis said. "You know how, right?"  
  
"I know," Squall said.  
  
"Oh, ok!" his instructor said. "I was just concerned, that's all!"  
  
Squall closed his eyes, establishing contact with Shiva who was inside him. He told her to junction the strongest magic to his stats, making him more prepared for the forthcoming. And it was done. Squall could feel his inner strength grow, making him more fearless, giving him more courage and confidence.  
  
"Alright, let's go," Quistis said, and they went to the entrance.  
  
Before the entrance stood two members of the Garden Faculty, guarding the entrance. Squall and Quistis stopped before them.  
  
"Objective for Fire Cavern: To obtain a low-level GF. A SeeD member must support. Are you ready?" they said.  
  
"I'm ready!" Squall saluted them.  
  
"I'm his support!" Quistis said, and saluted them as well. "Instructor No. 14, Quistis Trepe!" One of the faculty members took a clock out of his pocket and looked at Squall.  
  
"Select a time limit. Choose one suited to your abilities. Challenging yet reasonable!"  
  
"20 minutes!" Squall said.  
  
"Very well. Good luck!" the faculty said as they stepped aside. Loud growling could be heard from inside of the cavern entrance. Squall and Quistis proceeded, and the faculty took their places again. The faculty started the time as Squall went into the fire cavern.  
  
The fire cavern had got its name because of an underground volcano inside of it. The lava was flowing there, but it somehow stayed in one place. It was like the lava was moving in a cycle, it poured out from the volcano, and somehow disappeared down into the ground again. It was a natural phenomenon. In this cavern, Squall and Quistis walked in. The heat was extreme, but they didn't care.  
  
"My job is to support you in battle. Everything else is up to you!" Quistis said as they walked on the small rock road that led deeper into the cavern. Squall walked on with his natural, pale face. Quistis walked beside him, looked at him and tried to speak directly to him.  
  
"Fine," Squall said.  
  
"You know, the boys often choke on this test when I come with them," Quistis said, trying to catch the gunblader's attention. "I guess my charm makes them nervous," she giggled. Squall stopped and looked at her.  
  
"Whatever" he said to himself, but the glare he gave to Quistis looked like he was annoyed.  
  
"I'm just kidding," she said. "Trying to keep you relaxed, that's all!" Squall said nothing, but turned away, reaching for his gunblade. He turned his attention towards two Red Bats , a Bomb and a Buel who came towards them. Monsters, all of them, and they were as ugly as they were supposed to be. The Bomb was shaped like a weird head, with a laughing mouth, and two short arms. Its 'hair' were flames burning on top of the head. The Buel looked like somewhat of a weird propellor, three wings out of leather circling around a horrible, grinning face.  
  
Squall could remember the description of a Buel monster. They weren't strong, nor very dangerous, but their hang of using magic could be irritating. But its stock of magic, was a something that could prove useful for Squall. He concentrated again on the Buel, searching for its stock of magic. And he found what he was looking for: Blizzard. The best magic to use in the Fire Cavern! He and Quistis draw themselves 8 and 5 units of Blizzard magic, before Quistis whipped the Buel to the ground.  
  
But their next challenge expected them just behind the dead Buel. The two bombs and two Red Bats blocked their way.  
  
"One Bomb and one Red Bat for each of us!" Squall said.  
  
"Got it!" Quistis said. They both ran at their opponents. One of The Red Bats took a dive at Squall to take a good bite of him. Squall ducked and stepped aside, so the Red Bat met his gunblade instead. More didn't he know before he got the Bomb smack right into his face, and he fell backwards.  
  
Quistis weren't more lucky. The other Bomb threw a Fire spell at her. She managed to duck away from it, but her Red Bat landed on her shoulder and chewed a good part of her.  
  
Squall was immediately back on his feet, rushing towards the Bomb. Fire were glowing, both from the bomb, and in Squall's eyes, as he slashed the bomb a big wound, then blasting it off his blade. At the same time, Quistis took things in her own hand. Meaning she had a good grip around the Red Bat's throat. The bat was wheezing, but Quistis held on to it. At the same time, Squall launched himself in an attack onto the other Bomb monster. He slashed at it two times, before it fell to the ground and turned to dust.  
  
Quistis looked impressed as they went on the last part of the road and could see the lava-pouring volcano ahead of them.  
  
"I guess I was right. You and Seifer are in a class of your own. You both have amazing strength and potential!" She said. Squall frowned at the mention of Seifer, but he didn't say anything.  
  
He took a look at a watch on his hand. They hadn't been here for long, about 6 minutes. Maybe 10 minutes would have been enough?  
  
"Ok, This is it. Are you ready?" Quistis asked as they reached the volcano. Squall nodded. "You seem confident enough," Quistis said, and Squall wondered if there was a tense of pride in her voice. He stopped wonder as the ground started to shake, rocks in addition to lava started to pour out, and arising from the lava came Ifrit, the ruler of flames.  
  
The GF Ifrit was a brown creature with red hair, large horns, a musculature any bodybuilder would die to get, and his body were covered in eternal flames. The beast stood before Squall and Quistis as they took their fighting stances.  
  
Ifrit growled at the humans before his hands glowed and burned with fire. It wasn't like the rest of his burning body, more like..  
  
"LOOK OUT!" Only reflexes helped Squall dodge the Fire spell that burned the ground where he stood only minutes ago. Ifrit growled again and glared at the humans. A shredding voice soared through the air.  
  
"Blizzard!" Quistis shouted and turned her palms towards Ifrit. Blue sparkles gathered over Ifrit's head, and formed a large block of ice. Ifrit saw the coming ice, and leaped out of the way just before the block could hit him full-force. The beast jumped up at the nearest cliff and roared down at Squall and Quistis, who stood their ground below, glaring back at the flaming GF.  
  
"Impudent Humans!!" Ifrit growled, and it surprised Squall a little. Although it shouldn't have, all GF's had the ability to speak. Long time of serving humans had taught them the human language.  
  
The surprise kept Squall from seeing Ifrit leap right at him, knocking him to the ground. Squall felt like all his ribs were to crack, but he knew they hadn't. Shiva protected him. Her force helped him be strong. But he knew he now needed her help another way. As he saw Quistis receive a Fire spell full in her chest, screaming out in pain, he roared over the growling from both the volcano and Ifrit.  
  
"SHIVA!" Squall's voice echoed in the cavern. Quistis eyed him, stood up from the fire she had just received, and stepped away. It was wise to step away from the battlefield when a summoning came up, since the GF's force could hurt you as well. Ifrit growled as Quistis fled the battlefield, and eyed Squall. He leaped at him, giving him a blow across the face. Ifrit felt the blow hit, but not a scratch were seen on Squall from it. He stood his ground, just as Ifrit hadn't been near him at all.  
  
"Hm. Not bad for a human!" he said. Ifrit wasn't really sure what happened.  
  
"Diamond Dust!" Squall howled, as he fled the battlefield himself. Wise move! He had just gotten out of range as shredders of ice was raining from the sky, forming a pile of ice on the ground. The ice was glowing blue, and rumbling noises could be heard from it. One second later, a pyramid of ice arose from the pile. A figure of a woman could be seen, frozen into the giant ice block. Ifrit looked at it with surprise. He looked at the woman inside. Then he jerked back as the woman opened her own, shining, pale blue eyes and looked straight into his.  
  
"Shiva?" he asked. A crashing sound was heard as the queen of ice broke out of the pyramid, her blue hands glowing. Shiva rose her hands, drawing in power from the air. The shimmering blue energy shot out in cascades at Ifrit, revealing him trapped in a valley of ice. He couldn't go anywhere, nor move his feet, as they had froze to the ground. Shiva looked at him with her blue eyes once more, before snapping her fingers. The reaction was immediate. The ice valley broke into shreds of ice, breaking at Ifrit as well. Ifrits body became numb as his body temperature sunk from normal to extreme cold. He did something he rarely, or never did: He chattered his teeth.  
  
"They have Shiva!?" Ifrit roared, surprised and aggravated at the same time. He eyed Squall and Quistis. They were back on the battlefield, after Shiva had went away. He growled loudly, mobilised magic from within and aimed a Fire spell at Squall.  
  
"Blizzard!" Ifrit never got to shoot the fireball at him. The ice block Quistis had formed over his head hit him in the head, making him see stars and moons.  
  
This was the diversion Squall needed. He ran ahead at Ifrit and gave him a slash across the chest. Ifrit roared out in pain, sensing his body still being numb after Shiva's attack and his vision blurry after the blow to his head.  
  
But he felt the sharp edge against his throat and the hand holding his horn.  
  
"You lost, Ifrit!" Squall said as he held the gunblade against Ifrit's throat and held his head still with a firm grip around his right horn.  
  
"For me to lose to a human." Ifrit growled. Squall tightened his grip around Ifrit, in case the GF would try a smart move. He didn't said anything. "Very well, I will join you," the GF exclaimed.  
  
At the same time, it was like Ifrit went apart. His body slowly vanished from the heart and the rest of his body followed. As he was gone, Squall put his gunblade back. He then closed his eyes and searched for Ifrit in the surrounding. He found him. He called for him, imagining himself calling the ruler of fire. He could feel a warmth run through him, a warmth of strength and confidence.  
  
-You have my help, human!- a voice inside him said. Ifrit was a part of him now.  
  
Squall arose and nodded at Quistis. He looked at his watch. They had been in the cavern for 11 and a half minute, and the GF was obtained. Squall started to wonder if they could have made it within 10 minutes. But then he saw that they needed the time to get back to Balamb Garden in time before the exam. They went out of the cavern and went on their way back.  
  
The clock was about 1540 when they got back to Garden. It had taken some time because when they had went through the forest between Garden and the Forest, they had to hide for a T-Rexaur that had a feast on a Caterchipillar. A fight with it would only have worn them out, and Squall wanted top condition before the exam.  
  
"Well done!" Quistis turned to Squall as they reached the gate. Squall met her eyes. "Good, you got yourself a GF. Use it well, and don't forget you can learn many abilities from it!" Squall just nodded, but the information was tiresome. He had read the basics about GF, so he wouldn't have any problem with it at all. "It's late. Now go change into your uniform and assemble at the 1F lobby at 1600 sharp!" the SeeD instructor said before turning and walking inside. Squall ran past her, heading for the dormitory.  
  
-----------------------------  
  
Good, Squall got the GF, and I finally got the 3rd chapter finished. Hope you liked it, I'm not going to stop. I tried to give the Ifrit fight a little more personality and taking it a little away from the game aspect with turns and all that. I hope I made it to your satisfaction. Next chapter coming up in not long, peeps. Hang in there!  
  
- Ric Leonhart 


	5. Chapter 4

The Blade Of A Lion  
  
Chapter 4  
  
A quick teleport with the directory machine, and Squall got to his dormitory room. It was a double dorm, with a common room and two smaller bedrooms. Squall entered his own room. His bed was made perfectly and his uniform was hanging on the wall. He took it down and started undressing.  
  
Within two minutes he was dressed in his SeeD cadet uniform and his own clothes hang on the wall. There still was some time before the announcements were to be made, so Squall sat down and pulled out his gunblade. He grabbed a tissue and started rubbing it, giving it a polish before it was to be taken out. He stocked up on some gunblade ammo too. A gunblade needed ammo to work perfectly. Since Squall had chosen a gunblade as his weapon, Balamb Garden made sure he could always get ammo there for free. So for Squall, it was just to stock up. As soon as he tucked them into his pocket, the GF Item ability made the rest. Squall gave the gun barrel a spit of grease, rubbed it in and wiped it off, before loading the weapon ready.  
  
Before not long, he was on his way to the directory, where Quistis would hold her announcement. Squall's mind wandered while he walked his way, past the entrance to the cafeteria, the quad, and the infirmary where he had been earlier.  
  
"Squall! Over here!" Quistis said, waving him towards her. She was dressed in her SeeD uniform again, standing beside the directory. "I'm announcing the squad assignments for the exam now!" Squall walked up to her as she looked down on her list. "Let's see.. You'll be with..," Squall waited with excitement. "Zell Dincht. Quite a lively fellow!" Squall's shoulders went down, and he put his right hand on his hip.  
  
"Lively?" Squall sighed. "He's just loud. Can't I switch members?"  
  
"I'm afraid that's not possible!" Quistis said, and gave him a funny look. Then she looked down the hallway. "Over here, Zell!" she called.  
  
Down the hallway, a boy with spiked, blonde hair, about 5.5 tall, with a tattoo across the left side of his face, shaped like dragon-lines that poured from his ear, were doing moves of martial art, strikes, kicks and blows were delivered towards an invisible enemy. A quick glance towards Squall and Quistis, and then he did a cogwheel, flipped backwards a few times before performing a perfect backflip. Upon landing, he glanced over his shoulder and gave those two a thumb up while smiling proud.  
  
Zell Dincht strolled over to the two standing at the directory. Seeing Squall, his face lighten up in surprise.  
  
"Whoa! I'm with you!?" Zell said in awe and surprise. He rubbed his palm before extending it towards Squall. Squall just crossed his arms, looking away. It didn't appeared to affect Zell, somehow. "You don't get along with Seifer, do you?" Zell suddenly brought up. Squall turned his head to look at him again. "Heard he whooped you pretty bad this morning,"  
  
"We weren't fighting," Squall said with a monotone voice. "We were training!" Zell snorted.  
  
"I bet you he doesn't think so!" Zell said. "Look, Seifer's just being a pain in the ass. All you have to do is ignore him!"  
  
"That's..."  
  
"None of your business," Quistis said in unison with Squall. She giggled. "Ahem.. Excuse me, but...," Quistis started, catching the attention to the two cadets. "That Seifer you're talking about... He's your squad leader!"  
  
"SAY WHAT!?" Zell looked like someone just gave him a slap across the face. Squall was about to open his mouth when Quistis came ahead of him.  
  
"It can't be changed," she said, making the two sigh. Then she glanced around the hallway. "Seifer!" she called. "Are you here?"  
  
As a reply, footsteps was heard. A blonde-haired boy in a long, grey trench coat walked up to the directory, followed by a slender girl with grey hair and a patch over her left eye, and a muscular man with dark skin and short dark hair. Squall looked at Seifer and the scar between his eyes. It brought up memories from a few hours ago. Seifer met Squall's eyes with a grin as he walked by. Squall ignored the grin, and diverted his attention to the ones following Seifer.  
  
"Fujin and Raijin tagging along as usual," Squall thought. "Guess that makes up the whole disciplinary committee." The disciplinary committee had been formed within garden for giving garden students a chance to show responsibility. Those in the disciplinary committee could walk around garden and look after that no one violated the garden rules. However, members of the disciplinary committee often became unpopular for their bossy way of being, making them a group on their own. At this time, there was Seifer, Fujin and Raijin, and they were their own 'posse'. It was kinda ironic, actually, that Seifer were a leader in the disciplinary committee. He wasn't the one most familiar for keeping the rules himself.  
  
"You are the squad leader," Quistis said, snapping Squall back into reality. "Good luck to you!"  
  
"..Instructor," Seifer said. "I hate it when someone wish me luck," He cast a glance at Zell and then at Squall. "Save those words for a bad student who needs them, eh?" He said, nearly mockingly towards the two younger cadets. A silent growl could be heard from Zell.  
  
"Ok then," Quistis said. "Good luck, Seifer!" Seifer looked a bit taken back at that. Squall looked at Quistis, then at Seifer. Seifer growled silently.  
  
"Add Instructor Trepe to the list!" Seifer said. It sounded a little snappy. Squall frowned at the remark. He wasn't sure what it was all about. "The list..? What is it?" he thought for himself.  
  
"Well then," Quistis said. "You are all assigned to Squad B. I'll be the instructor in charge!" She looked at Seifer, then at Zell, and at last at Squall. "Teamwork is of the utmost importance," she consoled. "Let's get through this exam, everyone!"  
  
"Listen up," Seifer said loud. "Teamwork means staying out of my way!" Gimme a break, Squall thought. "It's a Squad B rule. Don't you forget it!" Squall met his eyes for a minute, then looked away. He could stay out of Seifer's way without problem. He just wanted to pass the exam, nothing more.  
  
"Everyone here?" a deep, friendly voice asked. Everyone turned to look at the man coming down the stairs. He was dressed in brown pants, white shirt and a red vest. He had brown hair and glasses. Cid Kramer, the Headmaster of Balamb Garden, walked to them and stopped beside Quistis. Several of the teams started to gather around to hear the headmaster speak.  
  
"It's been a while, everyone. How's everyone doing?" he asked, looking over the small crowd. "This exam," he began. "Will involve 12 members from squad A to D.. You will be proceeding to a real battlefield. Obviously, the battles are for real!" Whispering could be heard amongst the crowd. "Be silent!" Squall wished. "Life and death, victory and defeat, honour and disgrace... each of these go hand in hand. There's only one way or the other!" Headmaster Cid spoke with passion and warmth, and one could hear in his voice, these were the things he believed in. He looked at each of the 12 faces. "How 'bout it? You still up for it?" No one spoke. "You will be accompanied by 9 SeeD members. Should you fail, these members shall get the job done. They always do," Cid spoke. He smiled. "Well, thet's one less worry on your mind!" He radiated excitement, and this passed over to several of the squad members. Squall could see that Zell was getting excited up. Had to be the headmaster's spirit.  
  
"The pride of Balamb Garden! The elite mercenary force, SeeD! Learn from them, obey their commands, and accomplish the mission. Prove yourself worthy of becoming a member of SeeD. Best of luck!" The headmaster finished his speak, and the group of people started to move towards the garage, where the Garden cars awaited to drive them to the vessels docked at the harbour in Balamb. Squall followed right behind Seifer, and they got in the car. It soon started to drive, headed out of the garage, and set a course for the town of Balamb.  
  
Inside the cars, there were two rows on each side of the car. Up to six people could fit in, three on each side. Now, only four people sat there. Zell and Squall on the one side, Quistis and Seifer on the other. Squall sat leant forward, his arms crossed and his elbows on his knees, staring down into the floor. Seifer sat the opposite, he leaned back, both arms extended on the back of his seat. No word was spoken, and Zell grew uncomfortable.  
  
"Yo, Squall. Show me your gunblade, will ya?" he asked, leaning towards Squall and trying to catch his attention. Squall only replied with a small, humming sound. It was probably supposed to mean a 'no'. "Come on, man!" Zell said. Same answer from Squall; absolutely nothing. "Just a peek," the blonde pleaded. New hum from Squall. "Tch, fine...," Zell said, leaning backwards. "Yeah, yeah...," He tried to hide his curiosity, but he failed. "Why you being so selfish? Scrooooge!" Zell said with a childish voice. In addition to a new hum from Squall, Seifer shook his head to the last one. Zell twitched, before he burst out. "Say something, will ya!? W-What's on your mind?"  
  
"Nothing...," The answer came simultaneously from Squall and Quistis. Quistis giggled, and this time it was Zell's turn to let out a hum. He realised he didn't got anywhere. He stood up, took a fighting stance, and began punching in the air. After a few punches, Seifer frowned.  
  
"Stop that... It's annoying!" he said. "...Chicken!" he added. Zell's reaction was immediate. He took a defence stance, and pointed the outside of a clenched palm towards Seifer.  
  
"WHAT DID YOU CALL ME!!!?" Zell shouted enough for the whole car and everyone within a range of 50 meters to hear it. Seifer laughed hard, quite satisfied he had managed to upset Zell.  
  
"Knock it off!" Quistis said, getting up. Seifer stopped laughing and Zell sat down, but he had a deep frown, looking at Seifer. Squall turned his head to Quistis.  
  
"...Instructor...," he said, getting the attention from everyone. "Who was that girl in the infirmary this morning?" Quistis looked at him, and started to think.  
  
"Was someone there? I didn't notice anybody," She said as she shook her head. "Is there a problem?"  
  
"No... Not really...," Squall said, turning his head down to look at his shoes again.  
  
"This is great...," Seifer said. "I have chicken-wuss and a guy who just reached puberty in my squad!" Squall let out a small hum, while Zell growled, causing Quistis to shoot a glare at both him and Seifer.  
  
The Garden car entered Balamb town and drove straight down to the harbour where a vessel awaited. Upon stopping, A SeeD, two boys in SeeD cadet uniforms and a youth in a grey trench coat came out and blinked towards the sunlight.  
  
"So that's the vessel," Squall said, looking at the boat that was tied up at the quay. It was painted in blue, and looked like a big tank, with a small cannon up at the platform in front.  
  
"Ain't no turning back now!" Seifer said, eying the vessel as well. "Huh? You scared, too?" he asked.  
  
"Hey! You guys are the last! Hurry up and get in!" Squall never got to answer Seifer before one of the Garden staff members called them over.  
  
"Don't disappoint me now," Seifer said, before heading towards the vessel.  
  
"Come on, move it! Hurry, Squall!" Quistis said, when she noticed the slowpoke he did. Squall quickened his feet a bit, and entered the vessel shortly after Seifer. Quistis was the last to enter. Immediately after, the vessel started up and headed out for the sea.  
  
Inside the vessel, there were seats lined up in two rows with a table between them. Squall, Seifer, Zell and Quistis were all sitting there when a woman with dark brown hair and a SeeD uniform came into the room. Upon seeing the woman, Quistis got up.  
  
"Hi, Xu!" she said.  
  
"Hi Quistis," Xu greeted. She looked at the other three. Squall and Zell got up, while Seifer remained seated.  
  
"Well, these are the members of Squad B," Quistis said, presenting the three members.  
  
"Nice to meet ya!" Zell said, waving towards her.  
  
"Pleased to meet you," Squall said monotone, saluting the SeeD. Xu nodded to Squall and Zell, then shook her head upon seeing Seifer.  
  
"Seifer, how many times has it been now?" she asked.  
  
"Oh, I just love these exams...," Seifer said without looking at Xu. No more was said, and Xu made her way to a monitor located in the one end of the room.  
  
"I'll explain the current situation and the mission. Be seated!" Xu said, and everyone sat down. Except from Seifer, who never had gotten up in the first place.  
  
"Our client for this mission is the Dollet Dukedom Parliament. A request for SeeD was made 18 hours ago," Xu said as the monitor behind her sprung to life. "Dollet has been under attack by the G-Army since about 72 hours ago. 49 hours into battle, Dollet abandoned their positions in the inner city. Currently, they have retreated into the nearby mountains and are reorganising their troops!" While she explained, images, maps and strategies were shown on the screen. The arrows and markers projected stated her sayings the graphical way. "That's the current status. Now onto the mission objective!" Xu said. "According to our reports, the G-Army is mopping up the Dollet troops in the mountain region. We're to make a landing here, at Lapin beach," Xu said as she pointed at the map shown on the monitor. "We're to eliminate the G-Army within the city and liberate it A.S.A.P. Afterwards, SeeD members will intercept any G-Army forces trying to make their way into the city from the mountain region!"  
  
"So, what are WE supposed to do?" Seifer yawned.  
  
"SeeD candidates are to eliminate the G-Army inside the city," Xu answered shortly.  
  
"Sounds important!" Zell said.  
  
"Sounds boring!" Seifer yawned again. "So what you're saying is we do all the dirty work..." Xu didn't reply to that.  
  
"Oh, it hardly needs to be said, but... The order to withdraw takes priority!" Xu said. "Do not forget!" Zell, Quistis and Squall nodded. Withdraw orders were first priority in any mission. The rule was made for the safety of the SeeDs and their candidates. "We're almost there," Xu exclaimed. "We anticipate a battle as soon as we disembark. Just be prepared. That's all. Any questions, talk to Quistis!" With that, Zell and Quistis arose from their seats, letting Xu through. As she walked out the door, she cast one final glance at the three candidates and smiled a 'good luck'. The door shut.  
  
"We'll be landing pretty soon. Be prepared," Quistis said, repeating what Xu had said only a minute ago.  
  
"Alright," Squall said.  
  
"Roger," Zell stated.  
  
"Yeah, yeah...," Seifer yawned. He shifted and stretched. Then he turned head towards Squall. "Well then, Squall. Go see what's going on outside,"  
  
"......Ok," Squall said short. He didn't want to, but he wouldn't bother to argue with Seifer. Nothing good would come out of it anyway. He stood up and went out the door as Seifer grinned.  
  
"Good. Because it is MY order!" Squall didn't even bother to look back at him. Zell rolled his eyes as Squall shut the door behind him.  
  
Outside, the full moon mirrored in the sea, as good as it could be done. The ocean wasn't exactly laying still, and the several vessels that cut through the water, heading towards Dollet, didn't make the water surface calm down. On the roof, just before the cannon in front, Squall was standing, looking at the shores that approached in the horizon. He looked down on the large picture in his hands. It showed the shores of Dollet. He put a transparent paper with an arrow drawn on it, over the picture. It showed the objective; get into town and secure it. Squall lifted his gaze from the picture, and towards the shores. It looked almost identical to the picture, except for all the explosions and the soldiers running up the beach. Some of them fell, yet they moved on forward, determined to reclaim the city. Squall watched this, and felt the determination run through his body. Adrenaline started to boil within him. His mission was to take care of the soldiers inside the city. That was a mission he should do a hundred percent. Even though Seifer were his squad leader. He ran his hand over the handle on his gunblade, which was strapped to his left side. Then he clenched his fist. Mission time!  
  
As he came down, Seifer and Zell stood there ready to head out as soon as the doors opened.  
  
"All right! Time for some action!" Zell grinned. Seifer was about to comment on that, when they all had to hold on to whatever they could, as the vessel pilot entered the harbour area. Without heading through the gate. This breaking through the wall made the vessel jump high, before landing hard on the water and skidding up on the beach. The same moment as they were up, the doors went up un front, and Seifer, Squall and Zell jumped down on the beach. Other squads were already on the move upwards the beach. Quistis remained on the vessel.  
  
"Ok, you are to secure the Central Square!" Quistis said, pointing towards the town. "And be sure to equip your GF before you head into battle!" she added.  
  
"Let's move out!" Seifer said, running ahead. Squall and Zell ran after him.  
  
"Seifer, you have a GF junctioned?" Squall asked as they ran.  
  
"Nah," Seifer replied. "I can manage perfectly on my own muscle, thank you!"  
  
"That arrogant...," Zell began, but was cut off as a group of soldiers eyed them and ran towards them. Squall and Seifer drew their gunblades, while Zell took a fighting stance. The soldiers drew their own swords and ran towards the candidates.  
  
"Look out, it's SeeD!" one of the soldiers shouted. "Elite forces from Garden? They're Dollet reinforcements?" another one asked. "They still look like kids!" One of the soldiers readied a Fire spell and shot it towards Zell. Zell dodged it, and then ducked as a soldier slashed at him. The sword nearly hit his head. But Zell Dincht hadn't trained for nothing. As soon as the sword was swung over his head, Zell was back up, grabbing the soldier's arm and delivered a kick in his stomach. Just in time to see another soldier run towards him. Zell knocked the soldier he was holding, out of his senses, before he leaped at the coming soldier. Zell could read him like a book, this guy was a newbie. His bad! Zell easily dodged his sword in the mid air, and made a sickening 'crack' as his knuckles smashed the soldier's nose. In mid-air, Zell twisted, delivering a heel kick that sent the soldier crashing face first to the ground, out cold.  
  
Squall weren't any worse. At the same time as Zell was attacked, Squall's gunblade met one of the soldier's sword with a loud, crunching sound. Quickly, Squall withdrew his gunblade, delivering another blow at the soldier. The soldier was unable to block the strike, and Squall sliced the soldier's stomach open, pressing his gunblade trigger at the minute he felt the gunblade hit. The shot rang between the houses, blowing a hole through the soldier. Squall turned towards the second threat that approached him, two soldiers coming from each side. Squall concentrated on one of the soldiers, searching for magic within him. He found it. Quickly, he drew a Fire spell from the soldier, before sending it towards his companion coming from the other side. The soldier that received a burning, yelped in pain and stopped for a moment, giving Squall time to concentrate on the other soldier who slashed at him. Squall blocked the blow, and then the next, before starting to attack with full force towards the soldier. This one was a bit tougher than the last one. More experienced, Squall thought. But Squall had more strength. Ifrit helped him with that. He had junctioned Blizzard magic to his strength stats, and this soldier carried Blizzard. Squall pushed him away, and quickly draw some Blizzard from the soldier. As additional 4 units of Blizzard magic manifested within Squall's body, he could feel his strength grow. He looked at the soldier who rushed towards him for another attack. Squall met him, and quickly slashed at him, killing him in an instant. Suddenly, he yelped in pain as a fire spell hit him in the back. The soldier he had burned earlier, aimed another Fire spell at him. Squall growled, and used the time and concentration the soldier used for his spell, to run at the soldier and past, before turning his gunblade, and strike the soldier's neck with the blunt end of his blade. The soldier fell unconscious to the ground. Squall gritted his teeth as he felt the pain in his back from the Fire spell. Then he turned to look at Seifer, who slashed at the two remaining soldiers. Seifer gritted his teeth, flames was burning in his green eyes as he slashed at the two. He had already taken down two soldiers. One lucky blow, and the one soldier was down. One to go. Zell approached Squall, and caught a glimpse of the fire wound on his back.  
  
"Yikes, man!" Zell said. "Are you alright?" Squall didn't answer. Zell shook his head, and turned his concentration towards the soldier Seifer was fighting. Squall knew he was drawing magic from him. Then Zell turned his palms towards Squall, bright blue light emitting from them. The Cure spell eased the pain in Squall's back and healed the wounds. As soon as it was done, Squall draw a new load of Blizzard from the soldier. It was a powerful draw, he stocked 8 units this time. The loss of energy made the soldier hestitate a little, giving Seifer just the opportunity he needed. He blocked the blow from the soldier, before delivering a kick straight into his groin. The soldier howled in pain, before Seifer's gunblade brought him to silence.  
  
"I thought I told you to stay out of my way!" Seifer growled towards Squall. Squall just rolled his eyes, before following Seifer. The three candidates ran up the street, passing the local bar. A bridge was built over the road. Up on it, two Galbadian soldiers was standing. As soon as they eyed the candidates, they jumped down on the road, unsheathing their weapons. The SeeD candidates did the same, and threw themselves into the fight. Seifer on the one soldier, Squall on the other, while Zell stood in the back, drawing a stock of magic from the soldiers. The fight ended quickly, and the three went further into town. Before a car, Seifer stopped.  
  
"The Central Square is up ahead!" He said, pointing with his gunblade. Then he turned towards the Square. "Hey! All you Galbadian cowards out there!" Seifer called. "Come out 'n show me your faces! Don't leave me hangin' now!" Then he ran up ahead.  
  
"...What an idiot," Zell said, rolling his eyes. Then he followed Squall as he chased after Seifer.  
  
Just as they reached the square, they were attacked almost immediately by three soldiers. Squall and Seifer both slashed one soldier to the ground, while Zell got himself a crisp from a Fire spell cast from the last soldier. He shook it off fast as Squall drew a Cure from the soldier and cast it upon Zell, returning his favour. Then it didn't take Zell long to beat the soldier out of his senses. As the fight finished, Squall got an uneasy feeling.  
  
"There may be more...," he said, looking around.  
  
"All right," Seifer said. "I want you guys to scout the area for enemies!" Squall and Zell nodded, and went around the square for a while, looking for soldiers. Within one of the streets, one wrecked car was laying between the houses. As Squall approached it, a soldier jumped and tackled him. The two rolled on the ground, and the soldier took a grasp of Squall's throat. Squall struggled against the attacker, who had surprised him. But as he was struggling, Zell saw what was happening. He rushed towards Squall, giving the soldier a blow across the face that made him roll off Squall. Squall had his gunblade out almost in an instant, killing off the soldier. He panted a little, rubbing his throat. But he pulled himself together real quick.  
  
"I think that's all of them," he said as they headed back to Seifer. He looked really bored.  
  
"Well then, we're on standby 'till the enemy comes!" Seifer stated. Then he sighed. "Standby... How boring...,"  
  
Nothing was said for a while. Not until they could hear exploding sounds from far away.  
  
"Sounds like it's starting," Squall said.  
  
"Bring it on!" Seifer said. Zell rolled his eyes again. Then he paid some attention towards the dog that had came to the central square a while ago. A golden retriever, strolling peacefully among the three SeeD candidates while wagging its tail. Now it approached Seifer. He mumbled something before he waved at the dog. "Get outta here!" he said. The dog just kept wagging its tail, looking happily up at Seifer who actually paid attention. "Scram!" Seifer shouted at the dog. The dog crouched a little, backing off the teenager. Seifer ran up to one of the streets coming in to the square. "Hey! Galbadian soldiers!" he shouted. "What are you waiting for!? Come show me what you've got!" He started swinging his gunblade, slashing into empty air. Then he put it away. Zell just shook his head.  
  
----------------------------  
  
Well, that's this chapter. I'm terribly sorry it has taken me so long to write it, but I've had a serious writer's block lately. In addition to that, there have been military excersise up here, giving me little room for writing. I'll try making it up to you later. In the next chapter, we're heading to the communication tower. Hang tight, and don't forget to rewiew!  
  
- Ric Leonhart 


	6. Chapter 5

The Blade Of A Lion  
  
Chapter 5  
  
It could have been fifteen minutes. It could have been an hour or more. But they waited. Zell wandered restless back and forth, Seifer, even more restless, looked down to the ground while waving the gunblade with his wrist muscle. Squall stood still, sometimes shifting uncomfortably.  
  
A bell rang far away. They had been listening to explosions far away, healing their wounds, cleaned their weapons and spent time, looking at and playing with the dog who was still wandering between them. Zell called it 'doggy'. Seifer called it 'furface'. All they did was waiting. Even Squall could feel his patience beginning to fade away.  
  
"Nothing," Squall said.  
  
"Man... Now this is what I call boring," Zell growled. "This ain't right, man!" Squall just shook his head. He agreed with Zell, but he chose not to show it.  
  
"Still keeping us waiting...?" Seifer mumbled. Then he started swinging his gunblade in fury. "That's it...! I can't take it anymore!" he shouted. 'Great, our squad leader lost his patience', Squall thought. "What is this, some kind of dog training?" Seifer complained. He put his gunblade away, but was still twitching with impatience. Upon hearing the word 'dog training', Doggy Furface started smelling in the air, before it ran towards the western square entrance. It howled, like it had found its scent source. Squall and Zell immediately took cover, in case something showed up. Seifer remained standing, hidden behind a statue. The SeeDs looked over to where Doggy Furface was standing, and saw a familiar blue uniform. A Galbadian soldier appeared, looking around. He then waved his hand to something, or someone, behind him.  
  
"It's the enemy," Squall whispered as a number of soldiers walked by, silently. It was obvious they were trying to act incognito.  
  
"Where the hell they goin'?" Zell asked when the last soldier had passed and the SeeD's came out from their hidden positions. "Hey? What's up there?" Zell asked, and pointed towards a structure that could be seen up in the mountains in the west. It looked like some kind of a tower, but they weren't sure.  
  
"Our next destination!" Seifer exclaimed. Zell twitched and looked at Seifer like he had lost his mind.  
  
"But that's against orders!" he said.  
  
"Weren't you just saying how bored you were?" Seifer asked, glaring at Zell.  
  
"Squall!" Zell turned to Squall, trying to catch some support from the brown-haired teenager. Squall turned his back to the other two.  
  
"I stand by the captain's decision!" he said. Seifer turned around, looking at Squall with a surprised look.  
  
"Captain's decision?" he said, walking up to Squall. "You want to wreak some havoc too, don't you?" Seifer smiled, placing a hand on Squall's shoulder. Squall shoved the hand away the next second.  
  
"It's a good opportunity to test out my training," Squall said without any sign of emotion. "Thanks to you, I feel like I can take on anyone. Even if they do fight dirty, like you!" Seifer turned away on the last remark.  
  
"You'll thank me when the time comes," he said.  
  
"What the hell...," Zell said, walking up to them. "I thought you guys didn't get along? You're like all buddy-buddy now," he puzzled. He looked at them, before dropping his hands down his sides. "Listen. This ain't no ordinary battle. It's an exam, an important one. I'm tellin' ya, we have to stick to orders!"  
  
"Then you stay here," Seifer cut him off. "I don't need any boy scouts!"  
  
"What was that!!!?" Zell growled, taking a fighting stance.  
  
"Don't take him seriously, Zell," Squall said, trying to calm the blonde teenager down. Then he turned to Seifer. "Seifer, if we're gonna go, let's hurry!" Seifer nodded, then pointed his gunblade towards the mountains.  
  
"The enemy is headed for the facility. We, Squad B, are to secure the summit. Move out!" he said, before running off.  
  
"Alright," Squall said, following Seifer.  
  
"Tch... Fine...," Zell finally said after a little hesitation, then followed the two gunbladers.  
  
They didn't get all that far. The road was blocked by several soldiers, who started firing spells at them as soon as they got onto the bridge that headed for the mountains. The SeeDs managed to dodge the spells, and continued onward. As soon as they reached the soldiers, the battle begun. Squall and Zell used the opportunities they could find to draw magic, while Seifer dived head first into fights with one soldier after another. He was a well trained fighter, but the soldiers were good. He received some bruises and cuts. One soldier tried to slash him from behind as two others were fighting Seifer at his front. Seifer ducked to avoid a blow, then punched the second soldier in his stomach before he spun around and met the back-attacking soldier with the tip of his gunblade. Immediately after, he withdrew his gunblade, stabbed it through the first soldier, before slicing open the last soldier's throat. Squall and Zell teamed up against the two remaining soldiers, putting a quick end to the fight.  
  
Approaching the mountain, Squall could see a soldier that was down, lying on the side of the road. He was dead, and it had happened recently. The road ahead of them went upward the mountainside. Seifer had stopped, and Squall and Zell headed to him.  
  
"Ahhh! W-Who are you!?" A soldier in a Dollet uniform crawled out of the bushes beside the road. He looked terrified, and was covered in wounds and bruises. He looked at the SeeDs with fear plastered all across his face.  
  
"Don't worry. We're SeeD candidates!" Squall said in a friendly tone, to calm the man down. "We've been dispatched by Garden!"  
  
"So what's going on up there?" Seifer asked. The soldier managed to calm a little, seeing other faces than Galbadian soldiers.  
  
"The Galbadian soldiers have entered the communication tower," he said, looking up the road. "On top of that... that place has always been a nesting ground for monsters," he added. 'If that is so, is there a good idea to hide in the bushes?' Squall thought. "If you're going up, be caref..." The soldier was cut off by something snapping his leg. A giant snake caught his leg, dragging him into back into the bushes. "H-HEEELP!!!" the soldier cried. Squall ran to him, grabbed his arm and pulled it towards him, trying to prevent the monster from taking the soldier. It turned to be a pulling struggle. Two years of constant training each day with a gunblade paid off when he dragged the soldier out of the creature's mouth and into safety. The next minute, Seifer cut the head off the giant snake. Then, another wheezing was heard. Another snake, this one bigger than the last one, crawled out from the bushes. Squall, Zell and Seifer took their fighting positions, facing the giant snake.  
  
"An anacondaur!" Squall said after throwing a Scan-spell on it. The Scan was a useful spell against unfamiliar enemies. Immediately after casting, one could tell how strong or swift the monster was, how it lived and attacked, and one could learn the monster's elemental attributes; what it was strong against, what it eventually absorbed and what its weakness was. Zell immediately started by drawing from the giant snake.  
  
"It holds Fire and Cure!" he exclaimed. Squall and Seifer ran ahead to slash at the giant snake. Squall missed his target, and had to withdraw as the anacondaur snapped after him. Seifer managed to hit it, but not perfectly. His gunblade slid against the anacondaur's scales, giving the creature room to curl around Seifer. It squeezed him, tightening its grip more and more. Seifer's face turned red, then blue and slightly violet. But not for long. Squall and Zell rushed to the snake holding their captain. Zell caught the snake's neck, holding it out from Seifer, giving Squall the room he needed to chop the creature's head off. Anacondaur blood gushed from its body as it became limp. Without further exhaustion, Seifer could get rid of the snake body holding him. He shot the two an angry glare. So much gratitude for being saved. Seifer reached into his pocket for a potion, which he drank in a quick sip. Squall wiped the snake blood off his gunblade, before sheathing it back where it belonged. He bent down to check on the soldier they just had rescued. The wound on his foot bled badly. He had fainted, maybe to never wake up again.  
  
"Monsters, huh?" Squall said as he arose and looked up the road.  
  
"That sucks," Zell said.  
  
"More fun for us. Come on...," Seifer said, before heading upwards. He was one to talk, nearly being choked to death.  
  
"Fun? Pu-lease...," Zell sighed. Then he headed after Squall.  
  
It took them a long while to climb the mountain, even though they followed the road. That, because they met a few monsters and Galbadian soldiers on their way. When they reached the top, the SeeDs spotted two Galbadian soldiers standing at the entrance to the communication tower. The SeeDs hid themselves on top of a cliff, with a good view to everything that happened at the entrance. Crouching and laying flat behind rocks, they tried to catch the conversation as a third soldier came out the doors.  
  
"The generator is up and running!" One of the soldiers said.  
  
"No problem with the boosters!" the other one said. It was hard to hear, but not impossible. Seifer frowned.  
  
"... The hell they doing?" he demanded silently.  
  
"Cable disconnection confirmed! Beginning exchange progress!" a third voice said.  
  
"Roger," The two soldiers saluted, before following the third back into the tower. The door closed, and the SeeDs got up.  
  
"Repairs...?" Squall wondered. He didn't quite believed his own words.  
  
"Who cares!" Seifer said. He then turned to Squall. "This must be your first real battle. You scared?" he asked. Squall didn't even looked at him.  
  
"I don't know...," he answered. "I try not to think about it," Seifer grinned.  
  
"I love battles. I fear nothing!" he exclaimed. "The way I look at it, as long as you make it out of battle alive, you're one step closer to fulfilling your dream!"  
  
"What!?" Squall asked surprised, turning to Seifer. "Your dream?"  
  
"You have one too, don't you?" Seifer asked. Squall crossed his arms, and looked away from Seifer.  
  
"...Sorry, but I'm gonna pass on that subject," Squall said. Zell walked up to them.  
  
"Yo! Let me in on it, too!" he said. He felt uncomfortable being left outside.  
  
"Mind your own business," Seifer said, casting a mocking glance at Zell.  
  
"Friggin' hell...," Zell growled, delivering a few punches in the air in front of Seifer. This merely caught Seifer's attention.  
  
"What's the matter, Zell? Swatting flies?" he laughed. Zell trembled with anger. Seifer just laughed, before he started walking away. Squall remained standing, and Zell's burning eyes followed the laughing Seifer. As soon as Seifer was out of hearing range, Zell punched the ground.  
  
"Damn you...," he snarled through gritted teeth. Squall said nothing, just watched a furious Zell.  
  
"There you are!" a female voice said. A girl with brown hair and SeeD cadet uniform came jumping over the rocks towards them. She stopped upon the nearest one, and put her hands on her knees. She seemed to have been running for a while. Just as she was to step down from the stone, she slid and lost her balance. She took a dive, and rolled down to the path where Squall and Zell were standing. She was a bit taken by surprise, but she rise her head and smiled upon the two guys. Then she stood up. "Are you... Squad B?" she asked. Then she took a closer look at Squall. Her eyes trailed all over his face, before her own face lit up. "Wait a minute... You're the guy who showed me around, right!?" she asked. Her voice was mixed by childish curiosity and surprise. Squall just nodded. "Thanks!" she said, putting a cute smile on her face. "I don't get so lost anymore!" Zell looked at the girl, then at Squall. He seemed totally lost in the conversation. "Oh yeah, I haven't told you my name yet," the girl said. She looked at the ground. "I'm... a messenger. Name's Selphie, from Squad A!" She seemed a little embarrassed over the 'messenger' title. Zell greeted with a handwave and Squall just nodded. Selphie looked at the two boys, then looked around her. "The squad captain's Seifer, right? Where is he?" She hadn't even finished asking, before they could see Seifer running towards the communication tower's entrance. Squall pointed in his direction, answering Selphie's question. Seifer turned against them.  
  
"One of these days, I'm gonna tell ya 'bout my ROMANTIC dream!" he shouted. Then he turned and entered the tower.  
  
"This sure is tough...," Selphie sighed. "Captain! Wait up!!!" she then shouted, before jumping the cliff. Squall looked at her with surprise, and Zell thought she was crazy. She landed hard on the ground, but was up really quickly, running towards the tower. "What are you waiting for!? Come on! Come on!" she shouted up to the two boys still standing on top of the cliff. After a quick thinking, Squall decided to walk the way down from the cliff and getting to the tower the normal way. Zell followed him. It took them a little while to get down and getting to an impatient Selphie.  
  
"What took you so long?" she demanded. "It would've been much quicker if you'd just jumped,"  
  
"Much quicker? Pu-lease...," Zell sighed. "...You wouldn't normally jump off a cliff, OK!?" he said, almost scolding Selphie. "Ain't that right, Squall?"  
  
"Yeah. I guess so," Squall said. "You wouldn't normally jump that," That was said with as little interest as possible.  
  
"Hmmm... I don't know...," Selphie mumbled. "Well, anyway, let's get going! Has everyone equipped a GF?" she asked.  
  
"We have," Squall said. "Have you?" Selphie looked down.  
  
"Well... Actually...," she stammered.  
  
"Don't tell me you've forgotten it," Zell said.  
  
"I...," Selphie started, but was cut off by Squall.  
  
"Don't start it! I've got both Shiva and Ifrit, you can have Shiva," he said, taking Selphie's hand. Squall searched within him, ordering Shiva to let him go and ensnare a new master; Selphie.  
  
-As you wish, SeeD cadet- the GF said directly into Squall's mind. Then, it was like a part of him disappeared within, leaving a hole. A hole that itched. The cold feeling inside him disappeared. The only one inside him now, was Ifrit.  
  
"Thank you," Selphie said.  
  
"Try to remember next time," Squall said, turning away. Heading towards the entrance, Zell looked up to catch the view of the colossal structure.  
  
"So this is the communication tower...?" he said.  
  
"Sure is big...," Selphie added. More wasn't said before loud screams were heard from inside the tower. The door flew open, and two soldiers came running out. Following right behind them, swinging his gunblade, was Seifer.  
  
"Cowards!" he spat, before heading inside. Selphie barely made to shout a 'HEEEY' at him before the doors closed.  
  
"The captain's getting away!" she said, waving her hands. They entered the communication tower right away.  
  
Inside, a good deal of corpses were lying on the ground. No doubt Seifer had been there. An elevator coming down immediately caught everyone's attention.  
  
"...Did he go up?" Squall wondered.  
  
"Heey! Squad B captain!" Selphie shouted. The shout echoed through the tower, but no reply was heard. Squall looked around, but no Seifer could be seen. Instead, he spotted another thing. A draw point! He went over to it to examine. A crack in the structure gave room for the purple steam to flow upwards. Squall kneeled down and caught a little of the purple steam in his hand. He tried to memorise the signatures they have been taught at their magic classes. He found it was Blind magic.  
  
"How is your magic status?" Squall asked. Himself had a quite large stock of magic, being able to draw from the various battles they have had this far.  
  
"I'm good," Zell said. Selphie said nothing, and Squall could guess it perfectly.  
  
"You had no GF junctioned, meaning you have no magic now, am I right?" Squall asked. Selphie nodded slowly. Squall sighed, then offered some of the spells he had stocked. "Don't make this a habit," he mumbled, glaring at Selphie. She just nodded. "Now you can draw the Blind from here," Squall said, and headed towards the elevator. Zell followed him, while Selphie drawed the magic, stocking up 13 units of Blind.  
  
"Alright!" she cheered. "13 units!"  
  
"I think we can take this lift up...," Squall said, ignoring Selphie. They all got on, and the lift soon started to move.  
  
"Wow, this lift is really cool!" Selphie giggled.  
  
"Don't get too excited, or you'll fall," Zell said.  
  
"Like I'd really do!" Selphie giggled back. 'Is it possible to be that cheerful?' Squall thought, looking at Selphie as they went upwards.  
  
On the top of the communication tower, a Galbadian Soldier was standing. As a difference from the usual blue uniforms the soldiers was wearing, this one wore a red, and much more armoured uniform, showing he was an elite soldier. Two crosses and a star could be seen on his uniform, showing he was an officer as well. A panel on the communication tower was opened, and the soldier had his hands dug into the machinery, trying to fix the system. Sparks were flying among the wires and circuits rapidly, making the soldier feel uneasy.  
  
Another soldier approached him, this one dressed in the usual blue Galbadian uniform. He saluted the officer doing the repairs.  
  
"Major Biggs!" He said. "There has been a report of a monster-shaped shadow on top of the tower!"  
  
Major Biggs didn't pay him any attention. "Major Biggs!" the soldier said again.  
  
"Be quiet!" Biggs snapped. "I'm busy!" He mumbled something about 'never giving him a moment of peace' before trying to couple some wires. "This goes like this... And... Geez, what with these crappy old tools?" he complained. "And... and... Why do I have to make all the repairs!? AHHH!!!" The last scream was uttered from a load of frustration, combined with the fact that Biggs received a shock form one of the sparks that was flying between the circuits. The soldier felt a bit uncomfortable.  
  
"Sir, I'll check around while the repairs are being done!" he said, before saluting and leaving the major on his own. About a few seconds later, the elevator reached the top with three SeeD candidates on it. Squall, Zell and Selphie got off the elevator as it headed down again, and looked at the soldier beside the huge panel.  
  
"Let's see... Hmmm...," The major spoke to himself while his hands were working like crazy between the circuits. "Put this here... and... This goes here and... There! It's complete!" he exclaimed with relief. At the same time as Major Biggs removed his hands, the entire tower started to vibrate. Shooks and trembling rushed through old machinery that hadn't been in use for years, and screeches and scratches could be heard as engines covered in dust again sprang to life. The SeeDs looked around them, and tried to keep their balance within all the shaking, the sounds and the shockwaves that rushed through the tower.  
  
Squall was confused. He had no idea what this was from the beginning, and it even made less sense now. A roaring sound behind him made him turn, watching as a huge structure practically arose from the communication tower and folded out to form a gigantic antenna. The antenna were buzzing and sparkling in white lights, giving a flash as the white light spread out all over the heaven.  
  
Squall turned towards major Biggs. "What do you think you're doing!?" he demanded. Biggs turned around, a bit surprised by the voice.  
  
"Huhhhh?" he said. "Likewise, MISTER! What do you think you're doing!" he demanded back. Squall folded his arms, standing his ground. Biggs seemed to be taken even more by surprise by now. "H-HEY! What happened to all the soldiers down below!?" he asked, less demanding this time. Squall kinda felt like don't telling him, considering what they had seen upon entering the tower. Biggs didn't seem to enjoy himself. "WEDGE!" He called. "Take care of these twerps!" At first he grinned. But the smile died away very quick, since no Wedge appeared. "W... Wedge?" Biggs stammered. "I... ah... well... ah...,"  
  
Zell grinned. It was slowly starting to come to the soldier's mind that he was pretty alone up here. "I seem to be done here, so I'll just be on my...," Biggs said, slowly starting to go crab-walking towards the elevator, which were on its way up by the sound of it. "I'm leaving now. Move it... Move... Move...," he said, ready to escape on the upcoming elevator. He maybe would have done that, if not someone already was standing there. A certain blonde youth with a grey trench coat and a gunblade in his hand. Seifer!  
  
"Sorry to crash the party!" he said, slashing at Biggs. The control panel Biggs was holding flew across the platform, away from a terrified Biggs.  
  
"Ah... Ahhh... AHHHHHH! Are you CRAZY!!!"Biggs shouted.  
  
"Just shut UP!" Seifer ordered. Biggs backed a little off. Then he decided to take the coming fight. He readied the gun on his arm.  
  
"Prepare for the worst, you brats!" he shouted, before opening fire towards the SeeD candidates. Squall, Zell and Selphie jumped out of the way, barely dodging the bullets.  
  
"Put a hold on him, Selphie!" Squall ordered, drawing his gunblade.  
  
"Roger," Selphie said, forming a Blind spell in her hands and threw it at Biggs. A black cloud appeared in front of the major, showering his eyes with acid, causing him to gradually lose his vision. But the cloud wouldn't stay there forever. Zell checked the major for spells, and initiated a draw from him.  
  
"He holds Esuna spells!" Zell exclaimed, starting to draw even more. Esuna, the handy spell, was a must for anyone that could handle magic. The medic spell Esuna was capable of curing about any status illness. As long as Biggs was blinded, the SeeDs kept drawing Esuna spells, along with other handy spells, if not anything to raise their attributes.  
  
Suddenly, a new soldier appeared with drawn sword. He rushed over to Biggs with a bottle, pouring some liquid over his face. 'Eye drops', Squall stated.  
  
"Major Biggs... Have you finished all the repairs, sir?" the soldier asked. Then he looked upon the candidates. "What is the enemy doing here!?" Biggs regained his vision fully now, and looked at the SeeD candidates with anger. Then he moved his glare to the soldier.  
  
"WEDGE! Where were you!?" he demanded. "No pay for you this month!" Wedge jerked, just as if he received a blow.  
  
"Should have stayed home!" he complained. Then he turned his focus towards the blue-dressed youths in front of them. At the same time, they both rushed ahead to attack. Biggs went for Selphie, while Wedge threw himself into a sword fight with Squall. Selphie ducked away from Biggs, and swung her nunchaku at him, delivering several blows. The sorry thing was just that Biggs were heavy armoured, in addition to having several years of experience behind him. Biggs aimed again for the girl, rushing towards her like a bull that had lost its mind. A crushing blow was delivered, knocking Selphie down to the ground. She went down, Biggs grinning at her. That means, he was grinning until he got a face blast from a more or less furious Zell. The martial artist moved his hands and feet in a punching dance, making Biggs cover him self and retreating for a while. This bought Zell the time he needed to cast a Cure spell at Selphie. The managed to stand up, looking furious at Biggs. Zell gave her another Cure spell, healing the pain she had received.  
  
The fighting between Squall and Wedge went on, and despite the fact that Wedge's sword was much lighter than Squalls gunblade, it was actually Wedge that had to work hard to block the blows that Squall gave him. Squall delivered one high and one low blow, and Wedge had to be quick to follow them, and then blocking. Squall forced him to step backwards.  
  
"What the...!?" Squall lost his concentration, and Wedge did the same, as Biggs' startled yelp echoed over the platform. A tornado was practically lifting him up from the ground, before sending him head first into the newly arose structure at the communication tower. Biggs was out cold. And, as if that wasn't enough, the tornado changed its direction, aiming for the two swordfighters.  
  
"Watch out, Squall!" Zell called. Squall heard him, and jumped out of the way, just in time to avoid being taken by the powerful wind.  
  
"AAAHHHHH!" Wedge howled as the wind took him, sending him to the other side of the platform. He landed head first, and became as out cold as his major. Squall, Zell and Selphie looked after them, then looked up to see what had caused the wind.  
  
The sight made them all jump a little backwards. It looked like some sort of demon, with a big mouth and a sharp tail. It was coloured violet, mostly, except its back and chin that had an ugly, yellow-grey colour.  
  
"What the hell is it?" Zell demanded, as the creature flew down to them, glaring at them. A Scan spell were cast, allowing them to see who and what this monster was.  
  
"Elvoret!" Squall exclaimed. The information displayed it was a really powerful enemy. Considering its size, it was understandable. It was almost as big as a T-Rexaur. Elvoret roared at the youths, drawing its breath. A new tornado roared out of its mouth, showering over the SeeD candidates, nearly blowing them away as well. Seeing that its storm breath wouldn't work well on them, Elvoret raised its arms, before bringing them down so fast that the SeeD candidates barely had time to see it coming. Zell dived out of the way as the one fist hit the ground, bending the metal in the platform. Squall, however, weren't that lucky. The fist hit him full-force, knocking both air and daylight miles away from him. He fell to the ground, beat, but not unconscious. Selphie checked the monster for spells, and found something interesting. The monster held a GF! Selphie started to draw immediately. She lay all her force and concentration into this one draw, feeling a sweet song filling her as the GF came to its new master.  
  
-Hi there. Will you let me assist you, ma'am?- a sweet, gentle voice said. 'Who are you?' Selphie asked in her mind. -I am Siren, lady of silence!- the GF reply calmly. Selphie tried her best to concentrate on junctioning Siren as the battle against Elvoret still raged around her. Zell had jumped up to the creature, punching it for all good he could do. Elvoret was in pain, but not much. It picked up Zell, and sent him towards the ground. Zell threw a flip in the air, and managed to land on his feet. Nevertheless, the landing was rough, and Zell lost his balance.  
  
At the time, a lighter dizzy Squall was back on his feet. His body hurt from the beating he had received, but something stronger was inside him. Something that boiled hotter and hotter, like a balloon being blown up more and more, until it just would explode. And Squall exploded. He exploded in an aura of red light, howling for all the tower to hear him.  
  
"RENZOKUKEN!"  
  
An amazing strength filled Squall as he ran towards Elvoret, leaping straight into the monster's face. Squall started slashing at it, slashing again, and again, and again. The monster was brought down to the ground, howling in pan as the gunblader slashed it, moving the slashes downward along its body. After six slashes, Squall jumped off Elvoret, using gravity to slash the monster along the side, before landing behind it. All along, in every slash, he pulled the trigger at exact right time, dealing the maximum amount of damage he could give. After he was done, he ran back to Zell and Selphie, who stood watching him in awe.  
  
Elvoret, on its hand, were absolutely not in awe. It twitched and trembled at the shocking amount of damage, giant cuts and loss of blood. Squall's limit break had killed the flying demon head-on. Elvoret hit the ground hard, trembling in some final cramps before every muscle in the monster died. As soon as it lay still, the creature started to tear apart. The demon turned to dust that blew off with the wind.  
  
Squall was breathing heavily. The limit break had worn him out a great deal. Zell threw him a Cure spell, as well as the rest of them. Selphie folded her nunchaku, and put it in place. As for Squall, he took out a cloth and wiped the monster blood off his gunblade. Then he eyed Seifer. Where had he been all the time while they had been fighting Biggs, Wedge, and Elvoret? Selphie eyed him too, and headed over to him.  
  
"Squad B captain?" she asked. Seifer turned to her, with a certain pride that someone else called him 'captain'. "S'cuse me! I have new orders!" Selphie said, clearing her throat. "All SeeD members and candidates are to withdraw at 1900 hours. Assemble at the shore!"  
  
"Withdraw!?" Seifer said, like it was some word he haven't heard before. "There are still enemies around!"  
  
"I know, but I'm just a messenger," Selphie said. Seifer looked like he was thinking.  
  
"All order to withdraw takes priority," Squall said, quoting the rules they'd learned so many times. "I don't want to miss the vessel,"  
  
"What time d'you say?" Seifer asked. Selphie cleared her throat. "Like I said... All SeeD members and candidates are to withdraw at 1900 hours. Assemble at the shore!" Seifer took a glance at the watch he had around his arm.  
  
"1900 hours...," he repeated. "We only have 30 mins!" He turned around, and shot a glance over his shoulder. "You got 30 minutes to get down to the shore! Better run!" he said. Then, without hesitation, he jumped on the elevator and went down.  
  
"Heeey! Wait for us!" Selphie said, running to his head that disappeared down the shaft. Zell clenched his fists.  
  
"Who the hell does he think he is?" he demanded.  
  
"Why don't you ask him?" Squall asked rhetorically. They waited for a while, before the elevator came back up. "Let's go!" Squall said, getting on the lift. Zell and Selphie followed him.  
  
As the sound of the elevator went down the shaft, major Biggs started to move. He was dizzy, but even more he was furious. He collected what he had of strength, and crawled over to the little control panel that one of the youths had made him drop. HE grabbed it, and started pushing on a few buttons.  
  
"Those little twerps are the target...," he growled. He finished the programming, and rose a fist towards the sky. "Now GO. Go and DESTROY them!" Then he passed out, unconscious...  
  
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Whew. It took me shorter than I had expected me to, but I finally got it done. I hope you like it. I dunno when I'll have the next chapter out, but it will be. I have absolutely no intention of stopping. I just hope you readers will stick with me. Remember, you are what motivates me to write this story. I won't let you down, so don't let me down, ok?  
  
- Ric Leonhart 


	7. Chapter 6

The Blade Of A Lion  
  
Chapter 6  
  
Squall, Selphie and Zell went off the elevator as soon as it stopped, and didn't hesitated long to make their way out of the communication tower. Squall thought a little about what they had just experienced. The Galbadians seemed to have been after the communication tower all along, for reasons he was not able to figure out at all. Why? What was so special about this tower? 'On the other hand, it's probably none of my business,' he thought. What was supposed to be worrying him, was the fact that he and the others had disobeyed orders and left the area they had been dispatched too. It was Seifer's decision, but still...  
  
Thoughts like this crept through Squall's mind as he and the others went through the doors and got on the outside. They were about to run for the city, when they suddenly could hear a mechanical screech above them. Squall looked up, as did Zell and Selphie along with him.  
  
Standing on the platform they had been to just a few minutes ago, was some kind of weird machine, shaped like a spider with four legs. It was moving its way to the end of the platform with swift movements, then stopping for a while on the ledge. 'That thing can't possibly be so stupid it will jump all the way down from there?' Squall thought to himself. The spider-machine proved him more than wrong as it practically jumped off the platform and fell down towards them.  
  
"Look out!" Squall shouted as they threw themselves in different directions to avoid being crushed by the machine, which now appeared to be a gigantic, robotic construction. It wasn't looking very friendly, either. The gigantic spider turned to the SeeD candidates, looking threatening. Squall returned the gaze upon taking out his gunblade. Selphie took out her nunchaku and Zell took a fighting stance. The machine extended a foot towards Zell, and tried to stab him with the sharp end. Only quick reflexes stopped Zell from taking a real beating.  
  
Squall was feeling a bit bad. He still hadn't recovered fully from the beating Elvoret had given him, and this machine looked like a tough opponent. Zell threw a Scan on it. The result of the scan was way beyond comforting. But one thing was showing, though.  
  
"X-ATM092! It's weakness is thunder!" Squall exclaimed through gritted teeth. "Zell, You have Quetzacotl, right?"  
  
"Yup!" Zell answered, glaring at the machine.  
  
"Wait!" Selphie said, looking at the machine with real concentration. "It has Protect spells!" Squall looked at her, then checking himself. It was true, the X-ATM092 carried Protect spells. Squall immediately stocked a draw of Protect. But the hesitation had not been wise. It had given the machine time to prepare for a hard attack. The machine roared, before it smashed all of it four legs down into the ground, its nose glowing.  
  
"Watch out!" Squall shouted at the same second as a bright yellow beam shot out of the spider. It hit the ground in front of them, ripping mud, stone and grass violently to pieces of dust. The SeeD candidates were hit by the heat, rocks and the shockwave that followed from the energy ray the X- ATM092-machine had unleashed. The blast was incredible. Selphie managed to stand up and see the machine heading for her, extending one leg to stab her. She rolled back on her feet, and as the leg came, she stepped aside, throwing the nunchaku chain around the machine's leg. The little girl held the leg out, but weren't able to do it for long. The beating had worn her out pretty bad, as well as the others, too. The X-ATM092 growled, and managed to free itself from Selphie's grip.  
  
"Quetzacotl!" Zell suddenly shouted. Selphie's holding had bought him time. The X-ATM092 moved towards him, extending a leg to stab him. Zell didn't move. He was concentrated on summoning the GF. The machine-spider hit the blonde youth full-force with its leg, a stab that could be crushing stones. But Zell remained standing. Not one mark from the stab was shown on him.  
  
"Get back!" Squall called to Selphie, and the two backed off from the battlefield.  
  
"Thunder Storm!" Zell howled towards the sky, before backing off himself.  
  
The sky grew darker all the sudden, clouds gathered over the battlefield where now the mechanical spider were standing alone, the SeeD candidates had backed off. Suddenly, a thunderbolt struck the ground with a mighty roar, giving birth to a spinning, green being, slowly shaping from the whirling electricity. Quetzacotl, the bird of thunder spread its wings and turned towards its enemy, the robot spider X-ATM092. Its beak started to glow, slowly, but surely getting brighter and brighter, from red to yellow, from yellow to blue, from lightening blue to shining whiter, before a swarm of thunderbolts hit the machine, as well as the ground around it. Quetzacotl ascended, still frying the enemy with the blazing lightning. As the great bird arose, a mighty dome of electricity ascended with it. It surrounded its enemy completely, making it look pathetic inside the giant dome. Quetzacotl released the electrical storm from its beak, and flew onwards up to the sky, but the dome remained on the ground, forming a shining light on the top of it. Quetzacotl turned to watch the great dome from far up. As the green bird let out a sharp screech, the dome unleashed all its wrath down on the X-ATM092. A lightning bolt struck down from top of the dome, hammering cascades of electricity onto the spider.  
  
It was enough. X-ATM092 fell together like a wounded animal, twitching a few times before getting silent.  
  
"Let's get the hell outta here!" Zell suggested, and the other two agreed. They left the beaten machine at the gates of the communication tower and started to head towards town. They still had 23 minutes. As they rounded the turn, they heard huge, mechanical noises. Something was walking with heavy steps nearby. And around the turn, the X-ATM092 came, repaired and regenerated. Zell's jaw dropped.  
  
"I thought we already busted that thing up!?" he inquired. X-ATM092 obviously didn't agree with him. Zell took a fighting stance, but Squall stopped him.  
  
"Forget it! Let's go!" he said, and something in his tone made sure Zell didn't want to argue with him. "Move!" Squall said as the machine started following them, quite angry from the last fight. The SeeD cadets started to run, the X-ATM092 just behind them.  
  
It turned to be a race of dimensions. For its size, the machine knew very well how to move fast. Squall, Zell and Selphie raced down the mountainside, sliding and climbing the fastest they could to get downtown. The X-ATM092 followed them close by. Where the SeeD cadets had to climb to avoid losing the step and fall down, the machine just kept on walking, not considering safety for a minute.  
  
Eventually, they reached the place where Squall, Zell and Seifer had found the wounded soldier. Now, he was nowhere to be seen. Either a monster ate him, or he had managed to make it somewhere safe. Squall never gave it a second thought. Their stalker were coming right behind them, and were catching up real fast. The SeeD cadets' breathings started to get heavy, especially Selphie's. But they kept on running. The clashing sound that could be heard every time one of the legs hit the ground, boosted the adrenaline within Selphie, Squall and Zell. The cadets ran over the bridge, the machine right behind them. Suddenly, t X-ATM092 took a great leap, over the SeeD candidates, and landed in front of them, blocking their way.  
  
"Not again...," Selphie panted. But she took out her nunchaku, as Squall took out his gunblade again.  
  
"Summon, Zell! I'll keep it!" Squall ordered through gritted teeth. The cries "Quetzacotl" and "Renzokuken" came almost simultaneously. Squall glowed his red limit break light and leaped at the X-ATM092. With brute force, he brought himself down on the machine, metal meeting metal on its weaker points. Squall stabbed the robot four times, before performing an humongous backflip, giving the machine the last blow full-force in its face. Squall, trembled, and Selphie rushed to him to help him out of the way as soon as possible. As they ran off, Zell's cry again howled towards the sky.  
  
"Thunder Storm!"  
  
The bird of thunder came to build its dome of electricity once more. Just as before, X-ATM092 got itself a deep fry before Quetzacotl flew back up into the sky. And the machine fell again.  
  
"Come on, let's get the hell outta here!" Zell said as they ran past the machine and headed into town. They didn't get further than back to the central square before X-ATM092 were back on its feet, chasing them. It headed into town, and where the streets were too small, it just made its way through the walls and the houses. Nothing stopped the furious spider.  
  
At the central square, Doggy Furface was still standing. It barked and wag its tail happily at Squall and offered him to play. Squall couldn't bear leaving the dog, and he bent down, took its face in his hands, and looked it straight in the eyes. The message was clear. "Go!" Squall said. The dog ran off, while the SeeD cadets ran towards the shore. The X-ATM092 machine came right behind them, crushing road and the cars that were standing in the streets with it.  
  
As Squall, Zell and Selphie passed the bar and the bridge from earlier, three SeeD candidates came out through the doors. One look at the X-ATM092, and they were on their way to the shore as well.  
  
"Squad C, withdraw!"  
  
"Roger!" they said. Everyone ran down the street, away from the mechanical beast. Squall looked back, and saw X-ATM092 trying to climb over the little bridge, instead of just bashing through it. But suddenly, he understood why, and that made him speed up even more. The others were way ahead of him. X-ATM092 leaped off the bridge. But its aim wasn't exactly good. The spider crashed through a roof, totally off course. But it didn't stop it, nor made it lose its target. Just behind Squall, it bashed straight through the wall, and started chasing after him again. The range between the SeeD cadet and the machine weren't much more that a few meters as Squall and the X-ATM092 came out of the streets, and saw Lapin beach one more time. Squall ran to the ledge above the beach and just flipped over the ledge, X-ATM092 following right behind him. It was a long drop for the both of them. Squall landed rough on his feet, while the X-ATM092, driven onward by programming and rage, took a dive straight down in the sand.  
  
Selphie stopped down by the vessel and looked back towards Squall and the X- ATM092 with a worried expression on her face. Zell looked back as well, before jumping aboard the vessel. Quistis waited for him in there.  
  
"Squall's in trouble!" he groaned to Quistis between heavy breath. Quistis looked upwards to the town, and saw the giant spider lay down in the sand, Squall just in front of it. The gunblader struggled onto his feet, mobilising what he wore of strength to run the last part down to the vessel.  
  
The X-ATM092 didn't take long to regain from the sudden shock of hitting sand. Within not long, it was back up on its feet, it's scope locked onto the human running down towards the shore. It started to glow again, collecting all its energy for a blast towards the human being. Squall could feel his legs being tired. Zell waved at him from the vessel.  
  
"Come on, buddy! You can do it!" Zell shouted at him. Squall ran all he could, listening to the sound of the X-ATM092 following right behind him. The youth took a deep breath and leaped towards the vessel waiting for him, just as the X-ATM092 caught up with him, extending a claw, ready to drag him back to the beach and kill him.  
  
It never got that far. Over the whole beach, a roar of rapid gunfire could suddenly be heard. Quistis Trepe locked her aim at the X-ATM092 and fired the best she could do. The spider-robot twitched, trembled and screeched as Quistis pumped loads and loads of bullets in its machinery. Squall looked back at the beach through closing doors, watching the X-ATM092 fell to the ground as the vessel backed out from the beach and sat a course for Balamb. Back on the beach, X-ATM092 exploded into bits of circuits and metal, blowing a good hole in the sand as well.  
  
Into the vessel, Squall fell flat on all four. He breathe heavily, as well as Selphie and Zell. Xu came to them.  
  
"Come here, and get some rest. You can sleep all the way back to Balamb if you'd like!" she said.  
  
Squall couldn't remember where he lay down, or how he found it. All he knew, was that he rested, and was way beyond anything as the vessel headed back.  
  
Some time later, the vessels came ashore in Balamb. Seifer were first out of the vessel, followed by Squall, Zell and Selphie. They were back on their feet now, after gotten some rest, water and a few Cure spells. As soon as Seifer came ashore, two youths ran to him.  
  
"SEIFER!" Fujin said, approaching him. Raijin followed right behind.  
  
"How'd it go?" Raijin inquired. Seifer rolled his eyes.  
  
"Man... All they did was get in my way," he said with a tired voice. "Being a leader ain't easy!" he added. Squall could hear Zell growl behind him. Selphie just rolled her eyes.  
  
"SAFE?" Fujin asked. Seifer just nodded, before he started walking. Squall, Zell and Selphie centred their attention towards Quistis, who came out of the vessel. She looked at them, especially at Squall, it seemed.  
  
"Good job!" she said, and smiled proud. Then she looked a little closer at them all. "Where's Seifer?" she asked.  
  
Squall pointed towards Seifer, Fujin and Raijin that walked towards the garden car. Quistis nodded. "Just be back at garden by sundown. You're free 'til then," she said. "Ok, dismissed!" The three cadets saluted her before heading towards the garden car. The car had already started, and was heading out of the harbour before any of them could catch up with it. Squall shook his head.  
  
"H-Hey!!!" Zell shouted, running after the car for a while. Then he threw his hands up in the air and sighed. "Not again, man! There goes Mr. Ego...," he growled as Squall and Selphie approached him.  
  
"Might as well walk it!" Squall said, receiving a nod from the two others. AS soon as settled, the three SeeD cadets headed their way back to Balamb Garden.  
  
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I got this chapter out sooner than I expected. Dunno when next chap will come, though. I'll try not to make you wait too long. There are plenty of room for reviews, so R&R. All comments are welcome. 


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